The Return: The Conglomerate Trilogy (Volume 1)

by William S Frisbee Jr

  It could take days to scan the entire system for active Caliphate vessels. If they were in stealth mode, he could not find them at all, he would have to stumble upon them and that was statistically unlikely.

  “I’ll bet they fled home,” Brita said. “Off to warn the cockroach in chief.”

  Luke nodded. “They would have fled to get reinforcements if they had them.”

  “Kukri and Gladius stay on station,” Luke ordered. “Prevent any Caliphate vessels from transitioning to Conglomerate space at any cost.”

  “Aye, aye Commander,” Nelson said and sent the orders. Two frigates were not much, but it was better than nothing.

  “Launch recon probes,” Luke ordered when it was obvious nobody else was nearby. It was not rare for wormholes to appear as the stars of the galaxy danced around the core, changing the balance of gravity and pulling each other in different directions. New Alamo had not surveyed all the Sol systems so it was unknown how many wormholes there were. New Alamo had just chosen the closest one.

  “Set course for the Sol wormhole, full speed,” Luke said leaning back and scowling at the display. “And now we wait.”

  “Course set for Sol wormhole, full speed aye,” Nelson replied. It would take about three days to reach it and it had taken Leonessa over a week of fighting and evasive maneuvers to get to the Chonka wormhole.

  Luke reviewed the sensors. There was no sign of Caliphate forces, which didn’t surprise him. If the Caliphate flagship had returned to Sol, it was likely it had taken the entire fleet with it since the flagship was the only one with a working wormhole generator. They might have left stealthed drones to watch and record but the chance of finding them was near zero and it wasn’t likely they could transition the wormhole on their own.

  The transition across Josaka was uneventful.

  CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

  In Defense of Athena

  “Exiting Wormhole in five minutes,” Nelson said.

  Again, the CIC was manned but there was more tension in the air. According to Leonessa, the Athena should only be a few days away and would detect the Ultio coming out. Luke wasn’t sure what he felt, returning to Sol and engaging the Caliphate again in battle. He was not in a fragile drone frigate anymore.

  “Exiting,” Nelson said.

  “Frigates detach,” Luke said. “Launch fighters. Probes out, shields up.”

  “Incoming unknown targeting lock,” the Ultio computer announced. “Incoming unknown targeting lock,” the Ultio continued to announce until Luke lost count. Radars and targeting lasers were focusing in on the Ultio. They would be human Luke was sure.

  “Potential hostile missile launch,” Nelson reported.

  “Evasive maneuvers,” Luke said trying to take in all the information pouring in. Jupiter or Caliphate, he wished he had more info.

  “Cruisers in formation detected,” Nelson said.

  “I need identification!” Luke said.

  “Leonessa, I need you to get the Athena on comm,” Luke said. “Find out who is attacking us.”

  “Laser beams impacting on shields,” Nelson said. The cruisers appeared to have been waiting for them near the wormhole. Regular lasers. The shields should hold for a little longer. Plasma lances would have been a different story.

  “Identity confirmed, cruisers have Caliphate markings,” Nelson said. A camera zoomed in on one and it looked like the cruisers Luke remembered from long ago. Long, lumpy, ugly peanuts. The newer cruisers based on footage from the patroller that had fought them were shaped more like a lozenge, smoother with four arrow like blades near the front to open a wormhole. The newer cruisers were also about five hundred meters, close to the size of the Leonis Ultio.

  “Fire at will, shoot to kill,” Luke said realizing what a bad situation they were in. The Ultio needed room to maneuver. Without it, the Caliphate vessels could concentrate their firepower. Entering or exiting a wormhole was done at slower speeds and it left any ship transitioning a wormhole a slow easy target. The wormhole was large and invisible, sometimes tens of kilometers in diameter.

  Behind the Ultio the wormhole faded into darkness.

  Luke made sense of the plot and began his mental calculations.

  “Sound collision alarm, brace for impact” Luke said. The missiles had released their warheads. All the automated point defense batteries were firing non-stop.

  The explosions began and Luke felt the Ultio shudder.

  “Cutlass has sustained minor damage,” Nelson said. “Longsword and Ultio remain undamaged. Shields are holding.”

  “Return fire,” Luke pointed at one of the cruisers that lit up with his attention. “Concentrate on that one.”

  “Missiles away,” Nelson reported. “Main guns ranging, firing. More incoming missiles.”

  “Shield the Cutlass,” Luke said. “Full acceleration. Get us out of this kill box!”

  The first Caliphate cruiser shattered under plasma lance fire and the missiles were redirected to the other two Caliphate survivors.

  “Brace for impact,” Luke said as the Caliphate missiles released their warheads.

  This time the Ultio shook more strongly, alarms screamed, and red lights flashed.

  The Ultio’s missiles deployed their warheads and the last two cruisers died.

  “Caliphate frigates detected,” Nelson said. “They are turning to attack.”

  Luke checked the board, the fighters would make quick work of them. They had escaped the kill box and the warhead detonations targeting the Ultio.

  “Damage reports,” Luke said checking his boards.

  “I have the Athena online,” Leonessa said.

  “Put them on speaker,” Luke said hoping the damage reports were not too bad. They should not be. The last missile volley had cracked the shields and done damage but the Ultio was armored and tough.

  None of the cruisers had been the newer model according to the data being displayed on the threat screen, and there had just been three watching the wormhole.

  “Leonis Ultio, this is Athena Command,” the voice said. “Please identify yourself and your intent.”

  “Athena Command, this is Commodore Luke Kishi of the New Alamo Defense Force. How can we help?”

  “New Alamo?” Athena Command asked.

  “Correct,” Luke said. “I have the survivors from the JAS Shrike aboard my vessel. The senior officer Lieutenant Ferraro is with me.”

  “Looks like Athena is under attack,” Nelson transmitted. “They are an hour away at flank speed.”

  “Flank speed,” Luke sent back.

  “The Frigates and Fighters can get there faster,” Nelson sent. “They can get there in twenty minutes.”

  Luke said. “Do it. Get me an Opfor report.”

  “Athena command, we are moving to assist. Our light units will arrive in twenty minutes. Any data on opposing forces would be appreciated.”

  “Copy Ultio,” Athena Command said. “Any help is appreciated.”

  More information poured in and Luke did not like what he saw. Numerous Caliphate frigates were harassing the station but a large wave of cruisers, the newer class cruisers, and a large convoy of other ships, were on intercept with the asteroid colony. Three hours after he arrived the cruisers would be in missile launch range and it looked like the Athena did not have any mobile ships to defend it.

  Luke thought of his battle so long ago. A slow-moving colony asteroid could not evade or defend against faster moving ships and the attackers didn’t have to destroy the colony, they only had to destroy some key aspect of the life support mechanism. The concrete foam of the outer shell wasn't the greatest protection from nukes.

  “Flank speed to the enemy cruisers,” Luke said doing the math. There were eleven regular cruisers and five of the newer cruisers, he didn’t bother counting the transports. Luke’s chances were slim, even with all four frigates.

  One of his drone fighters died.

  “Launch the grav tanks,” Luke said. “Send them to Athena to h
elp with point defense.” Their plasma lances would be a nasty surprise for anything coming into range since Caliphate ships did not use shields and the plasma lances could slice through armor with frightening ease. Luke wished he had brought the other two frigates.

  “Begin Plasma lance ranging shots,” Luke said. Chances of a hit were slim but not impossible at this range, even if they didn’t maneuver.

  “Support ships are launching shuttles,” Nelson reported and Luke stared at the screen for several seconds. Shuttles would mean boarding and the number and type of support ships became relevant.

  “How many?” Luke asked.

  “Looks to be about twenty troop transports,” Bebchuck reported. “If they are standard model, each one holds about thirty shuttles. That is about six hundred shuttles. Each shuttle holds about sixty soldiers.”

  Bebchuck paused and did the math. “That is thirty-six thousand troops, over a division.”

  “I guess they will not blow it up then,” Luke said but it would be near impossible to destroy six hundred shuttles as they spread out to avoid nuclear detonations. ECM pods and other countermeasures saturated space.

  “They need a forward base,” Leonessa said a lump in her throat. “And they will also capture the wormhole generator.”

  The frigates and fighters were devastating the attacking Caliphate frigates but it wouldn’t be enough.

  “This will change our tactics,” Luke said looking at the holograph that showed ships with plotted speeds and courses.

  “Athena Command this is the Leonis Ultio,” Luke said. “Request permission to land troops to reinforce. We have some smaller weapons platforms that will arrive to help with point defense duties. I don’t think we can stop all those inbound shuttles.”

  “Acknowledge Leonis Ultio,” Athena Command said, there was a pause. “Can you have Lieutenant Ferraro authenticate Zulu, Zulu Alpha Five?”

  “I authenticate with Grassy Meadow and Viper Strike,” Leonessa said. She looked at Luke and turned off the comm for second. “They want to make sure I’m legit and not under duress.”

  Luke nodded. Athena had no reason to trust them but they should trust an officer of the Shrike. They would have computers analyze Leonessa’s voice, verify she was not under duress; the code would have a special phrase to show she was well. Only a fool would let hostile strangers land troops and Leonessa’s confirmation would gain their trust. They had nothing to lose. The writing was on the wall unless they got help.

  “Thank you. Any help is appreciated. You may proceed with your landing. We have little to stop them with at this point. Those frigates have been chewing on us for days.”

  “Land the battalion,” Luke said to Gray.

  Gray saluted and transmitted the command to his commanders before heading to the shuttles to join them. Gray was the battalion commander and he would not lead from the rear. Luke watched him go. That would be the more interesting fight.

  “Incoming Caliphate targeting lock,” the Ultio computer announced. “Incoming Caliphate targeting lock,” the Ultio continued to announce until Luke lost count.

  “Initiate ECM,” Luke said. Trying to break the locks with Electronic Counter Measures might work. He knew it would at least be partially effective but it was much harder to break a visual lock.

  One of the newer battle cruisers took a direct hit from the Ultio’s plasma lance and shattered.

  “YES!” Carmichael yelled. “Sons of bitches are freaking toast!”

  Felix bounced around the CIC and Luke regretted not putting it in the conference room, but it was not interfering.

  Luke smiled, the fight was just beginning. The Ultio could not handle such a force based on the simulations they had been running, not in a fair fight.

  “We will go all Mongol on them,” Luke said. “We have the speed and range. If they will not destroy Athena, then we can pick them off and fly circles around them. Our missiles have better range.”

  “And the assault shuttles?” Leonessa asked.

  Luke scowled at the display. There weren’t many options there. “All ships on intercept. Let’s see if we can thin them out. Watch for command vessels.”

  Luke looked over the engagement ranges on the holographic projector, showing ships, trajectories and projecting range bubbles. He wondered how expendable the shuttles were and if the Caliphate cruisers would risk nukes. It wouldn’t be much of a battle if he wiped out the warships but the Caliphate still captured Athena.

  “We will get chewed up,” Nelson said standing over Luke’s shoulder.

  “Yea,” Luke said. “However, those troops could do a lot of damage if they get on station.”

  “Sir,” Bebchuck asked. “May I join the assault droids defending the station?”

  Luke looked at Bebchuck and the others. They had to feel useless watching and not being able to contribute.

  “Not yet,” Luke said. “The warbots can handle the high gravity maneuvers better than humans can and their shuttles don’t have high grade gravity dampeners. I will send you on my shuttle when we can.”

  Bebchuck looked crestfallen. “Aye sir,” he said. Part of the problem was Bebchuck had little to do, but on Athena he could fight for his home. Others would feel the same. No warrior would want to watch the enemy overrun their home if they could join the fight.

  “Find out what you can about the Caliphate order of battle,” Luke said. “Locate the commanders and the personalities. Get me some character weaknesses. This battle is likely to last awhile and the more we know about our enemy the better.”

  “Aye, aye sir,” Bebchuck said, recognizing busy work when he saw it. It was all Luke could think of. His AI’s would assist but humans could be more intuitive than AI’s, especially when dealing with other humans.

  Luke looked at the screen displaying current courses and projections, cycling between thirty minutes, an hour, and two hours.

  The population of Athena was nearly a million but a large portion was women and children. Non-Combatants. Of the potential combatants, a tiny portion would be infantry combat trained and they could not be everywhere.

  “What is the layout of Athena?” Luke asked.

  “Standard asteroid colony,” Leonessa said. “Athena is about thirty kilometers long and fifteen wide, there are seven rotating cylinders inside that provide gravity and living spaces. Most are named after locations in Greek mythology. If they get into any of the cylinders, it will be costly to dig them out.”

  It would be nasty close quarters combat with many civilian casualties.

  In Luke’s experience, the Caliphate troops would rape, mutilate, or kill anything that moved, and not in that order. They were indoctrinated and frequently high on mind altering drugs. Luke wondered how they would handle fighting in space, which required more skill, caution and training, than fighting on the ground. If they were anything like the Caliphate troops he had fought back on Earth, they would be high on drugs, which would make them brave, but prone to do real stupid things, like taking off their suit in a vacuum to rape a body.

  Another cruiser took a glancing hit from the Ultio’s primary plasma lance and fell out of formation.

  “The enemy fleet is moving up behind the shuttles,” Nelson reported. “They will make us run the gauntlet.”

  “All humans to board my shuttle,” Luke said running a quick mental simulation. “I’m not taking anyone besides droids into the hell storm. You have a half hour to get loaded.”

  “I’m not leaving,” Brita said.

  “The hell you aren’t,” Luke said his eyes turning to lock onto her. “I just gave an order.”

  Luke stared at Brita who scowled at him. Leonessa didn’t move and looked at look with defiance burning in her eyes.

  “I’m sorry people,” Luke said, more calmly, putting ice into his voice. “This is not a request. I’ve been fighting my ships alone for over fifty years. This will be nasty and I don’t need my concentration broken. You can continue to link in remotely from my shuttle, bu
t you are almost worthless here and I won’t have you die for nothing.”

  “That’s not how it works,” Brita said without any concern. “Send the crew of the Shrike away but I am Ultio crew. I stay.”

  “The hell,” Luke yelled coming out of his chair and approaching Brita, he would throw her in the damned shuttle if he had to. Luke could barely see her through the red haze. He would not have Brita dying with him, or anyone else. That was unacceptable, he would risk no one ever again in a fight he was likely to lose. Brita unbuckled and stood, her body relaxing for a fight. “This is a combat situation, I have given an order.”

  Leonessa stood up and intercepted Luke. Felix joined her and growled at Luke. It was the first time he had ever seen the creature behave in a hostile manner and Luke paused. The red haze disappeared.

  “She has decided. Her death is on her hands,” Leonessa whispered so everyone else could barely hear her, but Luke heard fine. Felix looked vicious standing beside Leonessa, ready to defend her.

  “I will stay as well,” Leonessa said. “For my own reasons. I may not fight the ship like you, and if you require, I will retire to the auxiliary CIC, but I will not leave this vessel except in death or victory.”

  “Combat is not the time for these discussions,” Luke growled realizing he had been too informal. This was not how a command operated.

  “We won’t let you commit suicide,” Leonessa said and stopped Luke cold. He looked into her eyes, there was a fire there. He remembered that fire from so long ago. When Elena had that look, she would not back down, and he was seeing the same look. She was right. She knew him and she could read his soul. Luke saw it now, he saw how he had not planned to survive this fight, he would ram them if he had to.

  Luke stepped back, physically and mentally. He looked up and saw Musashi staring at him, arms crossed and defiant. He would side with Brita and Leonessa? Nelson was unreadable, but he was facing Luke, not Brita or Leonessa, his allegiance also clear.

  “Bebchuck,” Leonessa said. “Assemble the crew and get as many as you can to the shuttle. I'll be staying here. You will be in charge. Take Felix with you.”